Umana Reyer Venice will compete in the 7DAYS EuroCup for the second time this season after a historic campaign in which it won the Italian League championship for the fourth time in its 74-year history. The team had a strong regular season and finished third with a 20-10 record. In the Italian playoffs, Venice needed five games to defeat Dolomiti Energia Trento in the quarterfinals and another five games to get rid of Vanoli Cremona to advance to the finals. The finals series were no exception, and it all came down to the wire in a decisive Game 7 as Venice played Dinamo Sassari for the title. The last game at home was a wild party for the fans as Venice managed to take an 87-61 win and the Italian championship for the second time in just three years. Now, in what seems to be an upward trend for the club, Venice faces a new European challenge in the EuroCup.

EuroCup

Founded in 1872 as a gymnastics club, Societa Sportiva Costantino Reyer opened its basketball section in 1925. Venice won its first Italian League title in 1942 and managed to defend it in 1943 led by Coach Carmelo Vidal. The club ranked second in 1946, but could not match its great results after World War II and by 1957 Venice went down to the Italian second division. The club returned to the first division in the 1960s and placed fourth in 1969, 1972 and 1974. It made its European competitions debut in the 1976-77 Korac Cup. By the 1980-81 season, Venice had a powerful roster led by an elite foreign duo: Drazen Dalipagic and Spencer Haywood. The club went all the way to the Korac Cup final before losing in overtime against Joventut Badalona, 105-104. Venice stayed competitive through the 1980s and the early 1990s, but the club went bankrupt in 1996 and had to start all the way from the Italian fifth division in 1997. By the end of the 2010-11 season, Venice was granted a spot in the Italian first division, thus completing a sensational return to elite basketball. Venice made it to the Italian League playoffs in 2012 and 2013 and in 2015-16 its growing trend was confirmed with a berth in the 7DAYS EuroCup. Little by little, Venice started becoming a perennial title contender in Italy and finally won the 2016-17 domestic league, followed by a 2017-18 FIBA Europe Cup crown. Last season, the team had a strong domestic season and qualified for the playoffs, where it played all of the possible 17 games in the quarterfinals, semifinals and final to finally lift another Italian League trophy. Now, Venice is ready for its second EuroCup appearance.